Three Florida men were chased and ultimately charged with burglary and theft for allegedly taking purses out of cars parked in the Sourlands Preserve lot on Saturday.
Hillsborough police responded to a 9-1-1 call at about 11:44 a.m. of five vehicles broken into in the lot on East Mountain Road.
The three men were identified as Demetrius Robinson, 25, of NW 36th Street, Lauderdale Lakes; Anthony Robinson, 27, of NW 15th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, and James Maxwell, 26, of NW 33rd Avenue, Lauderdale Lakes. Police said the two Robinsons are brothers.
The initial 9-1-1 call told police about a burglary of a Honda CRV and the theft of a purse. The caller told the dispatcher that he saw a 4-door brunt orange Jeep with tinted windows and bearing out-of-state license plates leave the parking lot at a high rate of speed. The dispatcher related the description of the vehicle to Hillsborough patrol units.
Once at the park, responding officers discovered that four more vehicles were broken into and purses stolen from those vehicles as well.
A short time later, while on patrol on Amwell Road, Hillsborough officer Nicholas Saleeba saw a vehicle matching the Jeep traveling faster than the posted speed limit, according to police. He turned his vehicle around and activated his emergency lights and sirens; in response, the Jeep accelerated at a high rate of speed, police said.
After losing sight of the vehicle on Amwell Road, Officer Saleeba came upon the vehicle at the intersection of Amwell and Wertsville roads. The 2015 Jeep, bearing Georgia license plates, had been involved in a motor vehicle collision with a pick-up truck. The driver of the truck told Officer Saleeba that, after the crash, that three black males immediately jumped out of the Jeep.
Additional Hillsborough officers, along with Raritan Township (Hunterdon County) officers, began searching the area. The State Police Aviation Unit also assisted. After an extensive search, the three suspects were apprehended.
Police said Mr. Maxwell was found on Amwell Road while walking in the roadway. Police said Anthony Robinson was found hiding in a shed located behind a house on Amwell Road in the vicinity of Wertsville Road, and Demetrius Robinson was found hiding in a tree near Wertsville Road.
A search warrant was obtained for the Jeep and police said they seized Florida-issued driver’s licenses for the three, and a black-colored spring-activated window punch for shattering windows. The five stolen purses and their contents were scattered near a residence on Amwell Road, police said.
The defendants were each charged with five counts of burglary and theft, both in the third degree. Anthony Robinson was also charged with the second-degree charge of eluding. All three were lodged in the Somerset County Jail with bail of $75,000 cash only set by Superior Court Judge Julie M. Marino. The three were still in the jail as of Tuesday afternoon.
